This invention relates to a drum brake assembly for an automotive vehicle in which a retaining clip secures a wheel cylinder to a backing plate.
To assemble a drum brake, a wheel cylinder or hydraulic actuator must be attached to a backing plate so that the wheel cylinder can move a pair of brake shoes relative to the backing plate. On method of attaching a wheel cylinder to a backing plate is to bolt the wheel cylinder to the backing plate. However, this requires drilling holes in the wheel cylinder and drilling and taping the backing plate, or vice versa.
To eliminate the need for drilling and tapping, wheel cylinders have also been attached to backing plates by means of retaining clips. To use one such retaining clip, a portion of the wheel cylinder is inserted through an opening in the backing plate from one side of the backing plate. Then a retaining clip is fixed to the wheel cylinder portion from the other side of the backing plate to prevent the wheel cylinder portion from being withdrawn back through the backing plate opening. However, to utilize such a retaining clip, separate assembly steps must be performed from opposite sides of the assembly line where the brake is manufactured, or the backing plate must be flipped over 180.degree.. It is desirable to provide a simplified brake assembly in which both the wheel cylinder and the retaining clip can be attached to the backing plate without access to both sides of the backing plate.